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Monday, 4 September 2017

Lagos Policemen Collect N50K For Bail, Seize Phone Over N20K Balance

Policemen attached to the Anti-Kidnapping and Anti-Cultism Squad of the
State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department, Lagos State
Police Command, have been accused of collecting N50,000 before granting
bail to one Blessing Taiwo, who was arrested for alleged theft.

Although the suspect was released on Saturday after the money was paid,
the police allegedly seized her mobile phone pending when a balance of
N20,000 would be paid on Tuesday.

Punch
Metro learnt that the suspect’s sister, Florence Taiwo, who always took
food to her in the cell, was allegedly molested by the policemen who
touched breasts and dipped hands into her private parts before allowing
her to take the food into the cell.
Punch correspondent gathered that Blessing, a mother of two, had been
arrested on Monday after her boss, Mrs. Abiola Osagie, accused her of
stealing $50,000 while the latter was away on a trip.

After spending three days in the cell and the intervention of the Office
of the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer and an Assistant
Commissioner of Police, the suspect was released on bail.

However, a demand of N2m was allegedly made, which was negotiated to N70,000.

“After we paid them N50,000, the police didn’t release her (Blessing)
phone. They said we should bring the remaining on Tuesday when her phone
would be released,” a family member told Punch correspondent.

On how the matter started, Blessing said she had been working as the
office administrator and assistant to Osagie for the past eight years in
an international investment and equity firm, AfricInvest.

Blessing said, “The office cleaner was sacked more than a year ago and
since then, a new cleaner had not been employed. I have been the one
cleaning the office; washing the toilet and doing other menial duties.

“During the quarterly appraisal, I raised issues about the general
cleaning of the office and suggested we get somebody to do it. After she
travelled, I asked her driver to do the job for a fee of N10,000. I
decided to give the job to him to save cost.

“However, on the last day of the cleaning, I observed the man messed up
the chemical for the cleaning of the floor and I got a man to assist
with the clean up.

“She returned from her trip on Thursday, and by Friday, she came to the
office. I gave her feedback about the cleaning. I told her I invited
four people from outside to do the job. I didn’t tell her that her
driver did the job because if she knew, she would have asked why I paid
him any money.”

Blessing said she, however, received a call by 8.30pm on Monday, as
Osagie asked her to get to work early on Tuesday over an issue.

“When I got there, she said I should get a ladder and climb to a
particular cabinet. I thought she wanted me to bring down some files.

“However, I found a black bag and she asked me to bring it down. She
said she left $50,000 in the bag, among other currencies, and I told her
that nobody took anything from the place because I was careful,” she
added.

Policemen from the Ikoyi division were said to have been invited to the firm, who interrogated the suspect.

Blessing, 43, said she informed the police that the driver and another
man were involved in the cleaning and she supervised them.

The driver, however, reportedly told the police that the bag in question had been taken home by Osagie on Monday.

He allegedly said he noticed that the bag was heavy, adding that he did not know the content.

A security man on the premises, who was also interviewed, allegedly told
operatives that Osagie was seen returning to the office alone late on
the same night with the bag.

Punch Metro learnt that operatives searched the home of Blessing and checked her bank account balance without finding any money.

The Divisional Police Officer allegedly said there was no evidence
linking Blessing with the incident, but the complainant allegedly
insisted that she was culpable.

The matter was subsequently transferred to the SCIID, Yaba, from where
it was referred to the Anti-Kidnapping and Anti-Cultism Squad headed by
CSP Akinade Adejobi.

The suspect’s sister, Folake, said, “The police at Ikoyi told her that
they didn’t find any evidence of stealing. But she (Osagie) insisted
that my sister took the money.

“The case was transferred to the SCIID, Yaba, on Wednesday, from where
it was referred to Hogan Bassey Crescent. My sister was detained that
night and we were asked to return the following day.

“During the interrogation, the driver, who agreed to cleaning the office
and collecting N10,000 said he assisted the woman to carry the bag into
the car the night preceding when she declared the money missing. She
didn’t deny it.

“The other cleaner said he didn’t spend more than 20 minutes on the
premises and he assisted in mixing the chemical. When it was my sister’s
turn to talk, she (Osagie) asked her to keep quiet and she should only
respond to questioning.”

She said after the intervention of the Lagos police PRO and the ACP, Adejobi agreed to give the suspect bail.

Another member of the family, Florence, said she had yet to recover from
the harassment she suffered at the police formation while taking food
to Blessing in the cell.

She also alleged that her sister was subjected to inhuman treatment.

She said, “The stench in that station was horrible and I later realised
that it came from my sister’s cell, where a mentally deranged woman was
being held for alleged ritual dealings.

“I personally went through hell. Any time I was going to give her food, they would collect a bribe of N1,000 to allow me in.

“When I get in, the policemen will start touching my body, including putting hands in my private parts.

“There is a particular one that has been harassing me with calls and
asking me to date him. The policemen there are not normal; they wear
earrings in their tongues, ears and nostrils.”

Punch Metro obtained a petition on the case by the Network on Police
Reform in Nigeria, calling on the new Commissioner of Police in the
state, Edgal Imohimi, to investigate the matter.

The group said not only did Adejobi detain Blessing for three days,
which violated her rights, he also collected N50,000 for bail as against
the police ethos of ‘bail is free.’

It said, “In the first place, a case of stealing ought not to be taken
to or investigated by the Anti-Kidnapping Unit… And the OC decided to do
the complainant’s illegal biddings, which the DPO at Ikoyi
professionally refused to do.

“NOPRIN is shocked at the impunity with which the OC Anti-Kidnapping
assumed the role of investigator, prosecutor and executioner. He has
shown obvious interest and bias in this case. The conduct of the OC
manifests notoriety for corruption and abuse of police power. He is also
a bad influence on other officers under him.

“Police officers who sexually abuse female detainees or women who come
in contact with them should not be allowed to remain in the police
force. It is an egregious abuse that should be treated with great
seriousness.”

The group called for investigations into the incident and alleged acts
of misconduct and infractions of the law by the OC and some officers
under him.

The complainant, Osagie, said she had nothing to gain from wrongly accusing Blessing.

“The fact is that there was money in that bag and today, there is no
money. It is a mystery that has to be unravelled. I have gone through a
stress in a week that I haven’t gone through in my life. What is my
benefit in that? That I want to get the money that I didn’t have, or
expect Blessing to raise such funds?

The Lagos State police spokesperson, Olarinde Famous-Cole, said the
allegations had also been trending on the social media, saying the
command would investigate them.

In a statement on Sunday, he said the Investigating Police Officer,
Sergeant Kudeinbu Sheu, had been arrested and was being interrogated at
the X-Squad.

He said, “The command wants to reassure members of the public that
proper investigation will be carried out and the command will like to
encourage the suspect, Blessing Taiwo, to come forward with relevant
information to aid the police in the ongoing investigation.”